by Ron Stansell

Early Quakers were famous for their bold witness. The Quaker movement taught biblically about the equality of all human beings, the work of God in the hearts of people everywhere, loyalty to Scripture, the centrality of Christ, the possibility of culture being transformed, and the personal guidance of the Holy Spirit. These basic teachings have been important to Quaker missions.

Can looking back help us look forward? What can we learn from 20^th-century Quaker (Friends) missionaries? Ron Stansell tells the story of four pioneer missionaries and illuminates the ways they are models for Spirit-directed service.

Missions by the Spiritis told through the lives of Arthur B. Chilson, R. Esther Smith, Everett L. Cattell, and Jack L. Willcuts. Rather than offering comprehensive biographies, Stansell tells theses people’s stories with a focus on the practice and theory that made them effective missionaries.
Perhaps more important than giving answers, the four examples presented in the book help the reader develop the right questions to ask.

The book’s subjects represent considerable differences in personalities, spiritual gifts, and geography. One was a Midwestern mechanic who went to Africa (Chilson), one an inner-city mission worker in California who served in Central America (Smith), one a brilliant young pastor who
left Ohio to go to India (Cattell), and the fourth was a self-trained theologian/writer who grew up in
rural Kansas and Idaho and served in South America (Willcuts).

Stansell is candid about human foibles and limitations, but he draws attention to exemplary attributes these missionaries held in common, including:

• Sincere commitment to follow Jesus and to preach salvation by faith that creates change in people’s lives
• The influence of the holiness revival and the belief in the transformative work of the Holy Spirit
• A concern that the new churches might reach their full, autonomous potentials
• An awareness of the significance of Quaker faith and practice
• A concept of conversion as a spiritual transformation and a commitment to evangelization as reconciliation and peace with God and neighbor
• A belief in social justice, compassion, and gender equality
• A knowledge that public and private ethics mattered and that their silent testimonies counted more than the elegance of their words

Stansell shows that Friends have done some things differently than other evangelicals. Consciously and unconsciously 20th-century Friends were influenced by traditions and beliefs about the Holy Spirit, interpersonal relationships of peace and harmony, convictions that the human condition involves both physical and spiritual needs, and the belief that a passionately holy life full of integrity was required of them as missionaries.

Missions by the Spiritis enlightening for personal reading, and reflection questions at the end of each chapter enhance an option of using it for small-group study and discussion.

$24.00, paper, 2009, 321 pages, ISBN 978-1-59498-020-6